Texas Tax Rule 3.334 modified to the definition of “place of business” as it applies to local sales and use tax sourcing. It would have required that sales personnel be present at a location for it to be considered a “place of business” for sales tax purposes. If the location only housed a computer server, IP address, domain name, website or software application it would not qualify. See Sales and Use Tax. This change, if allowed to take effect, would represent a novel and complex requirement for Texas businesses.
In September 2021, litigation filed by the City of Round Rock against the Texas Comptroller, resulted in a temporary hold (injunction) being placed on the regulation. See City of Round Rock, Texas v. Hegar (Cause No. D-1-GN-21-3203).
Recently, in Coppell v. Hegar and Round Rock v. Hegar, a Texas District Court held that Texas failed to follow its own requirements in enacting its new rule. In short, unless the rule is re-amended or re-adopted (using proper procedures) by Texas, this change will not take effect.
